Now Open: Nominations for 2019-20 Common Reading Book (through Nov. 2)

October 5, 2018
daniel.rieck

PULLMAN, Wash.—Have you read a good book lately that lends itself to a theme of “global stability, scarcity, and security” and would be suitable for freshman classes and programming at Washington State University?

The Common Reading Program announces that nominations for the 2019-20 book are now open. An online form may now be used to submit nominations, which will be accepted through Nov. 2.

“The next book will be the thirteenth in as many years,” said Susan Poch, co-director of the program with Karen Weathermon since 2007. “Thousands of WSU students have gone through the program since it began, and benefitted from classroom discussions and faculty- and guest-expert lectures based on topics raised in each book.

“The common reading helps first-year and other students experience new ideas and create new and academically focused networks with professors and other students. The program is carefully designed to stimulate critical thinking and strengthen forms of communication around a single book.”

Nomination Requirements

Faculty and staff nominating books must provide a moderate amount of information. How does the book fit the theme, apply to a broad range of disciplines, and connect readers to, for example, existing university research, civic engagement areas, and global initiatives? How many pages does the book have, is it available in paperback, and is it a realistic read for freshmen? Additional questions are posed in the online form.

Selection Process

Because the common reading is a WSU-wide initiative, with every campus participating, selections will be made from a single list of nominations. From the books suggested for 2018-19, Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That’ll Improve and/or Ruin Everything was the book selected.

Weathermon explains that from titles nominated, each book is evaluated by members of an interdisciplinary, cross-campus selection committee. It narrows the list to a few titles, and produces a short list just a few months later. In Pullman, the university provost, as the top academic officer, makes the final selection.

Faculty plan how they will use the book in classes the next fall semester while the program, departments, residence halls, and organizations line up a series of events and presentations that often run throughout spring semester, as well.

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About daniel.rieck

I earned my PhD in Chemical Engineering at WSU by studying the biophysical nature of the molecular signaling mechanisms that control how the heart pumps blood. During my PhD work, my interest in and affinity for computer science, systems modeling, and visual and written communication blossomed into a new direction toward web development. I now live and breathe to solve problems of design through programming, automation, analysis, and abstraction.